School-to-work legislation calls for local partnerships to develop curriculum that integrates academic and vocational courses and links school-based and work-based learning. In at least 37 states, individualized state and local partnership systems exist. Contains 11 references and cites a program that brings teachers into the workplace. (MLF)

This guide provides an overview of the School-to-Work Opportunities Act of 1994 to help familiarize legislators with the law and its implementation and to give them information to answer questions from their constituents about the act. The following information is presented: (1) the goals of the act; (2) how school-to-work initiatives work; (3)…

This report examines local school-to-work partnerships in Pennsylvania and summarizes the lessons that can be learned from them. It includes information on how local partnerships work, functions of local school-to-work partnerships, and partnership activities such as establishing educator in the workplace opportunities, making business…

This report contains profiles of initiatives in the 50 states and Puerto Rico to connect learning and work. Learning and work initiatives combine education reform, workforce preparation and economic development to prepare individuals for a lifetime of learning, citizenship, and career success. The profiles are drawn from state applications for…

The federal legislation that created school-to-work (STW) was to meet the educational, economic, occupational, and skill-training needs of the future work force and the needs of employers competing in a global economy. Three key concepts characterize the STW initiative: school-based learning, work-based learning, and connections between school and…

Under the federal School-to-Work Opportunities Act of 1994, Colorado has created a system of partnerships linking employers and public schools. The state's School-to-Career Partnership started in October 1995 with a 5-year, $24 million grant. Grant funds are distributed by the state to local partnerships of education, business and industry, and…

Most of Arizona's 13 state-funded school-to-work (STW) partnerships are serving out-of-school youth through existing programs within their boundaries. The programs typically fall under the jurisdiction of educational institutions, training institutions, business and labor organizations, and other organizations. The most common approach to serving…

Information is provided on tech prep education programs, which are part of a restructuring movement that combines secondary and postsecondary programs to provide technical preparation in a field such as engineering technology, agriculture, health, or business. Information on the following topics is outlined: seven essential elements of tech prep;…

This report contains profiles of eight states (Colorado, Maryland, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont) that describe the states' efforts to include youth with disabilities in School-to-Work efforts. Data were gathered on each of the states through written records of state resources and grants, web site information,…

This report presents the first product of a comprehensive 5-year evaluation of a major federal effort, the School-to-Work Opportunities Act (1994), which provides 5-year federal grants as "seed money" to design systems involving work-based learning, school-based learning, and connecting activities. The report is based on extensive site…

In 1994, Alaska began the process of using its grant funds from the National School-to-Work Opportunities Act to design a school-to-work system to meet the following objectives: obtain commitment and involvement from Alaska's governor and officials involved in human resource development; develop an implementation plan for a statewide system to…

The school-to-work movement enlists employers as partners in the education process. The paper describes the 1994 School to Work Opportunities Act and discusses the importance of parent involvement. Includes a sidebar on the Lockport (New York) education summit. (SM)

The next step in the school-to-career (STC) movement is to build upon its significant successes in today's policy and political environment. The School to Work Opportunities Act 1994 codifies a reform agenda to promote academic achievement and economic opportunity for young people during and after high school. Its general principles are that most…

This document details Wisconsin's state plan for implementation of activities mandated by the School-to-Work Opportunities Act of 1994 and funded by a grant from the National School-to-Work Opportunities Act. The plan is divided into 23 sections dealing with the following topics: geographical areas; local support/expansion of school-to-work…

This document is intended to help existing school-to-work (STW) partnerships and the new local work force investment boards understand the opportunities for achieving common ground to better serve youth during implementation of the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) and formation of the new youth councils. The following are among the topics discussed:…